In my last post I was sharing about how my Pastor encouraged us to stop channel surfing and focus on one show. Metaphorically he was saying choose to stay focused on what is grabbing your attention in the Kingdom right now. Well as I stated in my past post, for me that has been prayer.
At this point I would like to apologize to my blog friends for my lack of contact over these last few weeks. For my focus has been else where. Yeah, you are getting my point. It has been focused on prayer. Now I know to some folks that may sound like a lame excuse. And I am not trying to spiritualize myself here by any means. It is just that for some reason, could be all the City Wide Fasting and Prayer that has gone on, my prayer life, as well as those around me has gone into over drive.
Let me share with you two days in my life this week to give you some understanding as to my rantings and ravings. On Tuesday I was leaving town to head down to Portland to see a friend and connect with my daughter and Puddin Toes, and drive them home from the last leg of their trip to the beach. It seemed like a good opportunity to go early and visit a very dear friend of mine who lives in Portland. I had to teach a class on the Holy Spirit Tuesday morning before I left town for some young people, doing an Internship program based out of Portland Bible College. I usually start the morning with an hour and half of prayer and then teach for an hour and half. Since I wanted to get on the road early to miss big city traffic, I asked the director if I could teach first and let some one else lead prayer. She said no problem. Well interestingly enough I was ahead of schedule this particular morning. If you knew me well, you would know that I am not a great morning person, ahem to say the least. Being ahead of schedule was very unusual. I got in my car and headed to the church early. Why, I don't really know, I was just ready to go. I started to play a new CD by Misty Edwards, Relentless, and by the end of the first two songs I was caught up into such a place of prayer and intersession, I was having a hard time driving. I got to the church and the director lets me in, takes one look at me and says I knew I should have listened to God. Apparently she sees that I am early and she had something else planned that she wished she hadn't scheduled, I think. Any ways I see that the kids are talking to some one about a conference coming up. So I head down to the prayer room next to the classroom in the basement. I just want to pray, I can't stop praying, my spirit is so stirred up.
I find that the prayer room is already occupied by a young gal, so I go next door to the classroom and continue to pray and intercede. When the kids are dismissed from their meeting they come down stairs for class, and I just can't settle to teach. I tell the director, I wish we could just pray... she says" Its your class do what you want." So I am like okay, let me just pray with the kids for a few minutes through these two songs I had just listened to in the car, and then I will teach and be on my way. Well to make a very long story short, I never did get to teach the class. Prayer ignited with those young people. The director ended up staying to pray with us. She called up another intercessor and said "Get down here, quick." We just went deep and heavy into declarative type prayers, by quoting scriptures God was showing us for the region and this season we are experiencing in God right now. Then it flowed into a time of the three adults imparting and praying for the kids. We were half way through the kids when I looked at the clock at 10:37 and had to slip out of the room and get on the road. I found out later they kept praying for the rest of the morning, while I drove away. Well, I put that CD back on and for the next three and a half hours as I drove, I continued to press into God and pray. It was so intense. But this was only the beginning of my two day prayer event, let's call it. When I arrived at my friends house somewhere around 2:00pm I walked into another very intense prayer meeting. I kid you not. I tried slipping in; not wanting to interrupt what was going on. But one of the gals spied me, and drug me into the room to join them. Join them; I was already there in spirit, phew! So I just joined in and it was 3:30 before we were finished. When everyone left, my girl friend and I compared notes. Apparently their prayer meeting had started the same time mine had...9:00am. She looked at me, I looked at her, and she said let's do it again tomorrow. OKAY! She immediately called up two of the gals that were with the group at her house and said tomorrow we are praying again, come when you can. At 10:00 am the next morning we slipped in my CD, and we were off. I think somewhere around 11:30 the other gals joined us. We took a quick lunch break and then proceeded to pray till 4:00pm.
I am not even sure how to explain this to someone, who may have not experienced this long of a prayer time for two days back to back. Honestly I have never prayed that long and consecutively before myself. My daughter arrives at the house at about 4:30 pm and looked at my friend and me and was like, what happened. All I can say is that time didn't seem to matter while we were praying. We somehow were tapping into the very heart of God on some matters and we just knew we had God's attention, and we needed to keep agreeing with Him in prayer. During prayer it was exhilarating, as well as tiring, but we just didn't want to stop. After wards we felt like limp wet wrung out dishrags. All we could talk about though, was when could we do that again. I know for me, it has been about ten years since I have had this kind of a drawing to pray. Please do hear me on this. I know it is the Holy Spirit who is drawing me and pulling me and others into this season of prayer. This is something I could not or would not be able to manufacture in the flesh. It is just simply God.
It certainly seems like my pastors advise to stop channel surfing and focus on one thing was a very good word. My prayers for all of you reading this, especially if you have read this far :] is to focus on that one thing you hear God speaking to you about. Pause for a moment in the mad rush of what we call our lives and watch what He is doing, and do that.
At this point I would like to apologize to my blog friends for my lack of contact over these last few weeks. For my focus has been else where. Yeah, you are getting my point. It has been focused on prayer. Now I know to some folks that may sound like a lame excuse. And I am not trying to spiritualize myself here by any means. It is just that for some reason, could be all the City Wide Fasting and Prayer that has gone on, my prayer life, as well as those around me has gone into over drive.
Let me share with you two days in my life this week to give you some understanding as to my rantings and ravings. On Tuesday I was leaving town to head down to Portland to see a friend and connect with my daughter and Puddin Toes, and drive them home from the last leg of their trip to the beach. It seemed like a good opportunity to go early and visit a very dear friend of mine who lives in Portland. I had to teach a class on the Holy Spirit Tuesday morning before I left town for some young people, doing an Internship program based out of Portland Bible College. I usually start the morning with an hour and half of prayer and then teach for an hour and half. Since I wanted to get on the road early to miss big city traffic, I asked the director if I could teach first and let some one else lead prayer. She said no problem. Well interestingly enough I was ahead of schedule this particular morning. If you knew me well, you would know that I am not a great morning person, ahem to say the least. Being ahead of schedule was very unusual. I got in my car and headed to the church early. Why, I don't really know, I was just ready to go. I started to play a new CD by Misty Edwards, Relentless, and by the end of the first two songs I was caught up into such a place of prayer and intersession, I was having a hard time driving. I got to the church and the director lets me in, takes one look at me and says I knew I should have listened to God. Apparently she sees that I am early and she had something else planned that she wished she hadn't scheduled, I think. Any ways I see that the kids are talking to some one about a conference coming up. So I head down to the prayer room next to the classroom in the basement. I just want to pray, I can't stop praying, my spirit is so stirred up.
I find that the prayer room is already occupied by a young gal, so I go next door to the classroom and continue to pray and intercede. When the kids are dismissed from their meeting they come down stairs for class, and I just can't settle to teach. I tell the director, I wish we could just pray... she says" Its your class do what you want." So I am like okay, let me just pray with the kids for a few minutes through these two songs I had just listened to in the car, and then I will teach and be on my way. Well to make a very long story short, I never did get to teach the class. Prayer ignited with those young people. The director ended up staying to pray with us. She called up another intercessor and said "Get down here, quick." We just went deep and heavy into declarative type prayers, by quoting scriptures God was showing us for the region and this season we are experiencing in God right now. Then it flowed into a time of the three adults imparting and praying for the kids. We were half way through the kids when I looked at the clock at 10:37 and had to slip out of the room and get on the road. I found out later they kept praying for the rest of the morning, while I drove away. Well, I put that CD back on and for the next three and a half hours as I drove, I continued to press into God and pray. It was so intense. But this was only the beginning of my two day prayer event, let's call it. When I arrived at my friends house somewhere around 2:00pm I walked into another very intense prayer meeting. I kid you not. I tried slipping in; not wanting to interrupt what was going on. But one of the gals spied me, and drug me into the room to join them. Join them; I was already there in spirit, phew! So I just joined in and it was 3:30 before we were finished. When everyone left, my girl friend and I compared notes. Apparently their prayer meeting had started the same time mine had...9:00am. She looked at me, I looked at her, and she said let's do it again tomorrow. OKAY! She immediately called up two of the gals that were with the group at her house and said tomorrow we are praying again, come when you can. At 10:00 am the next morning we slipped in my CD, and we were off. I think somewhere around 11:30 the other gals joined us. We took a quick lunch break and then proceeded to pray till 4:00pm.
I am not even sure how to explain this to someone, who may have not experienced this long of a prayer time for two days back to back. Honestly I have never prayed that long and consecutively before myself. My daughter arrives at the house at about 4:30 pm and looked at my friend and me and was like, what happened. All I can say is that time didn't seem to matter while we were praying. We somehow were tapping into the very heart of God on some matters and we just knew we had God's attention, and we needed to keep agreeing with Him in prayer. During prayer it was exhilarating, as well as tiring, but we just didn't want to stop. After wards we felt like limp wet wrung out dishrags. All we could talk about though, was when could we do that again. I know for me, it has been about ten years since I have had this kind of a drawing to pray. Please do hear me on this. I know it is the Holy Spirit who is drawing me and pulling me and others into this season of prayer. This is something I could not or would not be able to manufacture in the flesh. It is just simply God.
It certainly seems like my pastors advise to stop channel surfing and focus on one thing was a very good word. My prayers for all of you reading this, especially if you have read this far :] is to focus on that one thing you hear God speaking to you about. Pause for a moment in the mad rush of what we call our lives and watch what He is doing, and do that.
5 comments:
The Holy Spirit is nudging me - through your posts - to pray more!
Wow - how I envy you the times you have spent in prayer! Being a wife of a husband who is laid up with a broken ankle and the Mom of a five-year old little girl --that kind of time just doesn't come easy for me!
However --I do try to remain in an attitude of prayer and pray continually throughout my day - knowing that I have God's attention - and believing that even though I may not be on my knees - or pacing the floor - or raising my hands - or speaking His Word--He still hears and honors and responds - in His still, small voice!
Thanks for sharing your heart regarding prayer!
Very encouraging. It's amazing what God can do when we stop, focus on what He's doing. You're right...if it's a God thing...it's effortless.
What a good word...
I'm stunned...truly stunned with your story. I have not seen anything like it, but I would love to see this kind of a move of the spirit. I know that all revival is bathed in prayer...hmmmmm, yes, it's a prayer thing.
God bless and thank you for sharing this.
.....and if you don't kick your feet, there's no telling where you will be swept off to!
Wonderful, I can sense your excitement in your writing. May it continue.
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